Once individuals have completed their schooling, each new health and aging services executive may be required to get licensed as a health and aging services administrator. This is mandatory for all nursing home administrators, required in several states for assisted living, and is currently required in one state for home- and community-based ​

services. Depending on which state an individual wishes to work in, NAB suggests

that each person research whether the state requires a nursing home administrator,

assisted living administrator, or home care operator license to practice (some states require multiple licensures depending on the lines of service operated in a care community). New executives will also have to check to see what each state requires

for continuing (CEs) education once obtaining their initial licensure.

Another opportunity administrators can look into is the Health Services Executive (HSE) qualification from NAB. Individuals who have never been licensed will need to sit for a core of knowledge exam that covers all three lines of service (e.g., nursing home, assisted living, and home- and community-based services), and then a line-of-service specific exam for each of these areas, to obtain the HSE qualification. Licensed nursing home administrators with three (3) years of experience can provide NAB with current licensure information (e.g., state of license, educational degree) and take additional 50-item examinations (one for assisted living and one for home- and community-based services) to obtain the HSE qualification. When NAB grants someone the HSE designation, that person will have more flexibility to work in multiple lines of service and move between states that have adopted the NAB HSE standard.

Someone who is a self-starter. Administrators need to be able to think outside of the box. - Sara Starcher

Confidence, effective communication skills, compassion, and the ability to work independently are all important to have. - Spencer Beard

Someone that is optimistic, demonstrates a great work ethic, and is determined in what they do. They show that they want to gain experience working in the LTC/health and aging sector by volunteering or working jobs in this environment stick out. - Trevor Davis

No excuses — people who demand success no matter the environmental factors, humility and transparency, deals with stress well. They naturally gravitate towards driving culture, willing to debate and argue, yet listen. Individuals who have a service mentality, sense of humor/don’t take themselves too seriously, and a sense of mission. - Tris Rollins

If you’ve not seen Simon Sinek’s “Start with Why” video on YouTube, you need to watch it (or read his book by the same title). You look for people who believe in what you believe. - Z Thomas

Support from Associations and Organizations

American College of Health Care Administrators (ACHCA)The American College of Health Care Administrators provides opportunities for members of all ages to connect with one another to better understand post-acute and aging services. Their vision is “to be the premiere membership organization providing professional leadership and professional development opportunities for post-acute and aging services health care leaders. Dynamic leadership forges post-acute and aging health care services that are desired, meaningful, successful, and efficient.” ACHCA thrives by active members participating in their mentoring program, which allows the newer professionals to network with administrators already in the field.

American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL)The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living focuses on providing quality care for disabled and elderly adults in long-term and post-acute settings. Their mission statement is “improving lives by delivering solutions for quality of care.” AHCA/NCAL develops public policies that are needed to ensure the best quality of care and quality of life for individuals in proprietary and not-for-profit care communities around the country. AHCA/NCAL allows sites to apply for the National Quality Award Program to promote performance excellence. Sites can apply for the Bronze, Silver, and ​Gold awards, which show the quality of care provided to residents and reflects how executives can make positive changes within their care community.

LeadingAgeThe vision of LeadingAge is “an America freed from ageism.” LeadingAge wants to bring awareness to all members that executives and leaders should encourage people to live fully throughout their life course. There are three different types of memberships within LeadingAge, and the association also has a year-long Leadership Academy, which is designed to develop the leadership capacities and core competencies of aging service professionals across the continuum of care and services. The organization focuses on education, advocacy, and applied research while representing not-for-profit organizations ​spanning the entire field of aging services.

NAB aims to protect the public through the development of competency standards for professionals to assure that they are ready to serve their residents and communities to the best of their abilities. NAB provides candidates for licensure as health services executives with useful resources, such as study guides and resources, practice exams, and a career toolkit, to help in preparation for the NAB licensure exam. NAB and ACHCA partnered on development of the Administrator-In-Training (AIT) and Preceptor Training Program, which features an AIT training manual as well as a four-part online preceptor training course. Post-licensure, NAB approves continuing education (CE) programs, and offers the Health Services Executive (HSE) qualification to support licensure mobility across states lines and across lines of long term care services. NAB also routinely conducts a “Professional Practice Analysis” to identify the required, contemporaneous domains of practice, tasks performed, and knowledge and skills necessary for successful health and aging services executives.

National Investment Center for Seniors Housing and Care (NIC)NIC takes great pride in allowing users to gain knowledge about the health care field. Their mission statement explains that “the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC) works to enable access and choice by providing data, analytics, and connections that bring together investors and providers.” When obtaining information, NIC provides its members with multiple research-based pieces of information, such as Seniors Housing, and Care Market Performance Report and The State of Seniors Housing reports. This tool is helpful for individuals that are interested in finding out data related to property performance, primary market competition, opportunities in identifiable markets, and risk management. ​​

Access their site here:http://www.nic.org/ArgentumArgentum is an active believer in supporting companies that professionally operate resident-centered senior living communities. Argentum’s mission is “to promote choice, dignity, independence, and quality of life for seniors. To support this mission, Argentum influences public policy, promotes business excellence, and ensures an informed public.” The organization is always looking into ways to make the health care field more suitable for older adults. Ending in 2025, Argentum’s 10-year outlook plan aspires to improve quality by creating certification programs and developing a workforce to find qualified employees that will provide top notch care to older adults. The organization strives for consumer choice in affordable care in long-term ​settings, operation excellence by providers, and an increase in communities for individuals with dementia.